The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-07-22
A PATH OF HUMAN FLESH.
AN EXPRESS TRAIN DASHES INTO
A GANG OF LABORERS.

Twelve or Fifteen of the Men Torn
Into Shreds - The Track Strewn
With Blood and Strips of Flesh-The
Foreman's Failure to Warn the Men
the Cause.-The Frenzy Of the Sur
vivors
New YORK, July 21.-One of those
frightful accidents which come with ap-
palling suddenness when there is no appar
ent reason which could not be easily avoided
took place this morning on the Erie rail
road, between Allendale and Hohokus.
The catastrophe was attended with appall-
ing loss Of life, and over dozen mangled
bodies on the track attested the neglect of
some one whose duty it should have been to
give a warning of the impending disaster.
A gang of Italian laborers were at work
blasting on the railroad, a little distance
from a sharp curve, about three-tourths of
mile above HohOkus.
A TRAIN RUsHEs INTO THEM.
The Chicago express, which was due an
hour before, had not arrived, and these
men, whose foreman should have given
warning whistle when the train was ap
preaching the sharp curve, were busy at
work unconscious of the terrible fate which
was in store for them. At 7:l5 O'Clock, train
No. IL, the express, which was due an hour
previous, rushed round the curve before the
men had the slightest warning and dashed
through them, killing twelve or fifteen on
the spot and wounding many Others
A sICKENING SIGHT.
The shrieks of the victims were heart
rending, and when the train slowed up the
track presented the sickening sight of being
rlll l. hof,,
spatteead with blood and broken limbs, and
pieces of ragged flesh being scattered in all
directions. Some of the bodies were man
glcd beyond description, and crushed out of
all semblance of humanity. To most of the
victims death must have been instantaneous,
but some of them appeared to be yet quiver-
ing, and their life ebbing away. When the
train was brought to a standstill there was
only fifteen minutes delay, and the train
which had wrought so much disaster, pro-
! ceeded on its way from Allendale to HohOkus.
WHERE THE BLAME LIES.
The question of who is to blame is yet to
be settled, but it is claimed that it was the
duty of the foreman of the gang of laborers
to watch for approaching trains at the
dangerous curve, and that he must have
neglected to give the warning whistle. w.
| l.. Hudson, a passenger on the local train
which was behind the Chicago express, in
| conversation with a reporter described the
scene as one Of the most sickening that
could be witnessed. "Along the tracks, he
said ''were arms, legs, trunks and other
| parts of bodies, and the tracks for long
distance were slippery with blood. The dis
| aster must have taken place with such ap-
| palling suddennesS that the men did not
| know it till the train was down on them.
| The conductor of the train on which | rode
said that the train hands of the express
=, l., In1;, ,ol O.,
man of the gang was responsible for the
disaster by neglecting to give warning
ANOTHER VERSION OF THE HORROR.
Another account of the accident says
that about 100 Italians We're at work upon
| the roadbed when train came along, and
| the Italians stepped on to the other track to
| allow it to pass, but Just then the Chicago
express thundered down on them at the
rate of fifty miles an hour, and literally
moved its way through, singing the un-
fortunates right and left, tearing their legs,
and arms and heads off and
| grinding their flesh into the roadbed
! for 200 or 800 feet. So fierce was the shock
| that although the engine struck nothing but
| human beings the powerful cowcatcher was
torn, twisted and broken into pieces Some
of the Italians were crowded against the
rocks in a very narrow space.
WHY THE TRAIN RAN on
The engineer of the express train reversed
| his engine and was coming to a stop when
| the passengers told him to go ahead. Look
| ing back they saw the uninjured Italians
acting like maniacs. They were yelling, ges-
| ticulating and tearing their clothes. Some
were kneeling and Others dashing about on
the middle of the ghastly pile of mangled
bodies When they saw the train stopping
| they made a rush for it, and had they
reached it undoubtedly would have muir
dered the engineer, fireman and conductor
| For this reason it was deemed best to come
on to Jersey City, where the engineer and
| conductor were closeted with the officers of
the road and away from where they could
| be interviewed
THE PADRoNE AT THE SCENE.
March, the padrone, who supplies the Erie
Railroad Company with its Italian laborers
arrived early at Paterson. He identified the
men by means of their numbers, which are
written on slips and carried in little tin
boxes. Six or seven hundred dollars was
found on the persons of the dead men and
was taken by March to be handed to the
Italian Consul at New York III trust for
their relatives. Marchs action was a source
of Indignation TO the other Italians, who
wanted TO take charge Of the money them
selves. They would have mobbed him only
for the timely interference oftwo policemen
AN EXPLOSION OF POWDER.
|